In the Trivikrama incarnation, Vishnu assumed the form of the dwarf Vamana, who extracted a promise from Bali, King of Asuras, that he could have territorial control over the amount of space he could cover in three paces. Vamana then assumed a gigantic form and covered the earth world with his first stride, the mid-world between heaven and earth with his second and with his third, stepped upon the head of Bali, thereby sending him to the nether world of the Asuras. As metaphors, the Varaha and Trivikrama subjects, while not unique to Pallava Art, might have been deliberately chosen to refer to specific achievements of the king, presumably the defeat of Pulakesin and the avenging of the defeats to the Pallavas under his father. The rear walls of the cave bear images of Gajalakshmi on the left and Durga on the right, suggesting the notions of prosperity (Gajalakshmi) and once again victory (Durga). An interesting aspect of the Durga relief is the figure at the front left of the composition who is in the act of self-immolation by decapitation. Such figures are found during the Pallava period and later in South Indian art, generally in relationship to Durga images and may be related to rituals detailed in at least one Hindu text.
Each relief is characterized by essentially naturalistic scaling, in contrast to what is often seen in Indic sculptures and by considerable special complexity. In this latter sense, strong ties to the Iksvaku tradition are suggested.
This earlier Indian dynasty from the Andhra region inherited by the Pallavas used sophisticated devices to imply illusionistic space that were perhaps originally or partially inspired by Roman art, in the Varaha relief, this complexity is seen in the two figures at the left who turn inward and are shown in a rear/profile view. In the relief of Durga, one figure is shown from the rear while another is depicted in profile. Although arbitrary adjustments of scale to suit the hierarchic needs prevail in South Asian Art, essentially naturalistic means are used here to achieve emphasis.
In the Gajalaksmi panel, for example, the central figure is emphasized by being placed above the others on a throne but is depicted in the same scale as other figures. In all the reliefs the elements are carved in a fairly three-dimensional manner; space exists around each figure and the effect is almost as if the deities and their attendants were indeed in the presence of the worshipper. The slender figures, with their narrowed, tapered limbs, betray the Andhra heritage of Pallava Art and anticipate the typical style of the South Indian Tamil area to be continued into the reign of the Cholas and even to the still later Vijaynagar kings.
Each of the caves at Mamallapuram is unique. The variety of iconographic types represented in them indicates an already established wealth of imagery. This suggests that these excavations were modelled after structures that no longer exist but which might have revealed the formative stages of architectural development.
The Trimurti cave, for example, consists of three similar shrines entered directly from the exterior with no porches or mandapas, but unified by the carving of the exterior of the rock into temple facades with architectural niches containing figurative sculpture. The name Trimutri literally means ‘triple form.’ But here it refers to the Hindu trinity of Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. Shiva is the most prominent of the three in this conception, since His is the central shrine, flanked by those of Brahma (viewer’s left) and Vishnu (viewer’s right). The slightly larger size of the central shrine and its projecting form emphasize its preeminence. A fourth worship area is designated at the right of the façade where a set of steps leads to an image of Durga, although an excavated shrine is not present.
Durga is shown in an eight-armed form standing frontally and atop the buffalo head of the defeated Mahisa in a format typical of Pallava representations of the subject. Each door to the three shrines is flanked by a pair of male figures who serve as dvarapalas. The back wall of each of the small rectangular shrines is decorated with a large relief representing the deity to whom the shrine is dedicated. In the case of the Shiva shrine, a stone linga is also placed on the floor in front of the image.
This practice of caving the rear wall of the shrine is typical of Pallava monuments and contrasts with often bare-walled shrines found throughout Northern architecture.
In Pallava shrines the linga is usually carved of a different stone than that of the shrine itself, and in the case of cave monuments, the linga is added rather than rock-cut. The façade of this excavation contrasts with that of the Varaha cave in that it is not pillared. Instead, it replicates an actual vimana, that is, a shrine with its superstructures, and is bet- ter compared to the freestanding monoliths found nearby at Mamallapuram. The date of this cave is unknown but its form suggests that it was excavated in the middle to late seventh century.
A highly unusual cave has been excavated not far from the heart of Mamallapuram about five kilometers away at Saluvankuppam, a village that certainly lies within the ancient boundaries of Mamallapuram. This excavation, the so-called Yali (Vyala) cave is distinguished by the eleven vyala (horned lion) heads that form a kind or ring around the central excavated chamber and its two flanking niches. To the viewer’s left of this area but also on the face of the rock are carved elephants shrines atop their backs. Although the main show no trace of any original images within, these small shrines each bear a much worn depiction of a four-armed deity.
The original purpose and meaning of the cave, however, remains unknown. Further, the date of the excavation is uncertain, although it is probably a monument of the late seventh or early eighth century.
In addition to the variety of architectural types seen in the caves of Mamallapuram, numerous religious subjects were interpreted anew by the Pallavas in sculpture and other were introduced for the first time. A representation of Durga battling the demon Mahisa in the so-called Mahisasuramardini cave, for example, is unlike any other depiction of this scene known in earlier Hindu art. Durga sits astride her lion vahana while Mahisa, depicted as a human figure with a buffalo head, appears at the right, as if recoiling from her attack.
Fallen warriors of Mahisa’s army appear at the right and lean in the direction of retreat, while Durga’s forces advance from the left. The naturalistic rather than hierarchic scaling of the figures, includ- ing Durga herself, who is not even as large as her opponent, heightens the sense of emotion and drama of the scene. In addition, the figures are in animated and logical poses that further increase the sense of actuality. In composition such as this, the Pallava sculptors achieved a striking balance between the world of nature and the realm of the divine.
The most impressive sculptural composition at Mamallapuram is the famous relief that has been alternately identified as the descent of the Ganga River or Arjuna’s Penance. This striking work is believed to have been carved during the reign of either Mahendrvarman I or that of his son Mamalla. Measuring nearly thirty meters in length and approximately fifteen meters in height, it contains a myriad of figures, animals and other subjects, all of which are carved on approximately life sized scale. A major aspect of the composition is the natural feature, which has been skillfully incorporated into the design and subject matter of the carving.
Arguments for the interpretation of this impressive scene as either the Descent of the Ganga River or Arjuna’s Penance are convincing in each case. Both stories are found in Indian literature, although different versions appear in various texts.
A strong case for the Descent interpretation is presented by the central cleft of the composition, with its naga inhabitants, as a representation of the holy river, the Ganga itself, in the rainy season, a now lost receptacle is believed to have filled with water, which could then fall down the cleft into a tank as a kind of living reenactment of the sacred descent. Some scholars believe that the tank, at the base of the relief, would have served as a royal bathing pool for the king himself.
The arguments for the Arjuna story are less compelling, thought still substantial. In this tale, Arjuna, one of the five Pandava brothers of the Mahabharata, performed served austerities in order to enlist Shiva’s aid (literally, his weapons) in achieving victory in the pending war between the Pandavas and the Kurus. Since Arjuna’s penance was performed on the bank of a river, the arguments can be made that this subject is represented in the Mamallapuram relief.
Both the Descent and Arjuna’s Penance interpretations would be served well by the figures at the top of the relief, just to the left of the cleft. The penance- performing individual, with arms raised and balanced on one leg, could represent either Bhagiratha, whose penance brought the Ganga to earth, or Arjuna, whose penances earned him the aid of Shiva’s weapons.
Shiva, who appears next to the ascetic in a four art form, attended by his dwarves (ganas), performs the varada mudra, or gift bestowal gesture, with his front left hand, a gesture that would be appropriate to either story.
In each case, too, secondary meanings relating to the Pallavas themselves, of the type inferred in other contexts for Pallava art, might be suggested. A later Pallava inscription mentions that the Pallavas resembled the Descent of the Ganga as it (too) purified the whole world.
Considering the prominence already accorded the Gangadhar a murti icon in Pallava art, considerable credibility is given to this interpretation. Alternately, Arjuna, the hero of the Mahabharata and leader of the Pandavas, might serve as a symbol of the Pallavas themselves for just as Arjuna sought Shiva’s aid in the war against the Kurus, the Pallavas sought victory in their continuing competition with the Early Western Chalukyas.
In light of such strong but conflicting evidence, it might be argued that both meanings simultaneously were intended by the creators of this remarkable relief. However, this suggestion, too, would need further substantiation.
Important features of the relief included the large elephants at the lower right, the small shrine with a representation of a deity, the ascetics worship at the shrine if to converge at the cleft. Considerable naturalism in pose and individuality in facial features is seen in the figures, reflecting some of the concern with naturalism seen elsewhere in Pallava Art.
As is generally true in the Indian art, the figures are the principal elements of the composition; it is the figures that create the volumes and dynamism, rather than arbitrary devices, such as systems of perspective or landscape elements, which could be used to render a context.
Other monuments at Mamallapuram include the nine freestanding monolithic building scattered throughout the site. A series of five concentrated in one group near the sea gives the visitor the remark- able sense of waling through a petrified city.
The origin of the idea of producing complete replicas of structural buildings, complete both inside and outside. But, apparently, this mode never became as popular as the cave format, which did not require the completion of exterior details other than that of the façade. Usually, these monoliths have been called rathas; a complete misnomer since they are clearly not intended to represent temple carts (rathas), but are more properly termed vimanas, for each is a distinctive shrine. The major group of five monoliths has been traditionally named for the five Pandava brothers (two of whom have been assigned to one shrine), and their common wife, Draupadi, although this iconographic interpretation is clearly erroneous.
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